10 interesting stats from Matchday 3 | UEFA Champions League 2021-22

There were goals galore on an exhilarating Matchday 3 of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League.

The third matchday of this season's competition saw most of the top teams take all three points, albeit in contrasting fashion. Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Ajax were among the big winners on matchday. Meanwhile, Manchester United and PSG had to overcome deficits to emerge victorious.

In other results, Barcelona got off the mark in this season's competition, thanks to a landmark strike by Gerard Pique. Elsewhere, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann also grabbed headlines, albeit for contrasting reasons.

On that note, here's a look at the ten most interesting stats from Matchday 3 of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League:

#10 Yeremi Pino becomes the youngest player in Champions League history to score on his birthday

Yeremi Pino exults after scoring in the Champions League.

Yeremi Pino made history in Villarreal's 4-1 win over the Young Boys on Matchday 3 of this season's Champions League.

The teenager, who opened the scoring for the visitors in Switzerland, became the youngest player in Champions League history to score on his birthday. Pino has only made his debut in the competition this season.

The 19-year-old now has one goal in three games in the Champions League.

#9 Manchester United become the second team to win three Champions League games from 2-0 down

Manchester United left it late to beat Atalanta.

Manchester United got off to a calamitous start in their home game against Atalanta as the visitors went two goals to the good in the first half-hour. That spurred the hosts into action, though, and United scored thrice without reply in the second half to take all three points.

In the process, the Red Devils became only the second team in Champions League history to win a game after going two goals down. Arsenal are the only team in competition's history to win three games from a 2-0 deficit.

With their second win in three games this season, United are top of their group, ahead of second-placed Villarreal, who have four points.

#8 Borussia Dortmund suffer their heaviest defeat in the Champions League

Borussia Dortmund suffered their heaviest Champions League defeat in Amsterdam on Tuesday.

In a top-of-the-table clash in Group C, Borussia Dortmund traveled to Ajax on Matchday 3.

Both teams had won their first two group games this season, so something had to give when the two locked horns on Tuesday. Unfortunately, it was BvB who came unstuck in Amsterdam, conceding four unanswered goals to endure their heaviest-ever Champions League defeat.

Dortmund will hope for a swift turnaround in fortunes when they welcome the Eredivisie giants on Matchday 4 in two weeks.

#7 Sebastien Haller becomes the second player to score six goals after three Champions League games

Sebastien Haller scored for the third Champions League game running.

Sebastien Haller continued his fine start to life in the Champions League when he scored for the third game running on Matchday 3.

After becoming the first player to score four times on his Champions League debut, Haller scored in Ajax's 2-0 win over Besiktas. The striker added to his tally against BvB as the Eredivisie giants ran out 4-0 winners on the night. His latest Champions League goal means Haller has become only the second player to score six goals in his first three Champions League games.

Erling Haaland is the only player to do so, scoring six times in his first three games in the competition two seasons ago. Haaland, who was in action on the night, drew a rare blank in the Champions League as BvB slumped to a heavy defeat.

#6 Robert Lewandowski scores his 200th goal in club competitions since 2017-18

Robert Lewandowski scored against Besiktas

Robert Lewandowski continued his blistering start to the season, scoring for the third straight Champions League game.

The prolific Pole scored one of the goals in Bayern Munich's 4-0 win at Besiktas. He now has five goals in the Champions League this season, a staggering tally of 16 across competitions. Continuing on from his 48-goal 2020-21 season, Lewandowski has now scored 200 goals in competitive club games since the start of the 2017-18 campaign.

The 33-year-old scored 55 times in 2019-20, 40 times in 2018-19 and 41 times in 2017-18. Bayern won the continental treble in 2019-20, and at least the Bundesliga title in all the other seasons during this period.

#5 Antoine Griezmann becomes the first player in Champions League history to score a brace and get sent off

Antoine Griezmann had a night of mixed emotions on Tuesday.

Antoine Griezmann hasn't exactly caught fire since his return to Atletico Madrid this summer. But the Frenchman was at his sizzling best against Liverpool, scoring a quickfire brace to cancel Liverpool's early two-goal lead.

However, Griezmann was sent off for an early shower when he saw a straight red after a high boot that caught Roberto Firmino in the face. That marked the first time a player scoring a brace in a Champions League game got sent off.

The numerical superiority eventually told as Liverpool scored a second-half winner with a Mohamed Salah penalty to move atop their group.

#4 Gerard Pique becomes the joint-most prolific goalscoring defender in Champions League history.

Gerard Pique exults after scoring Barcelona's winner.

With Barcelona on the cusp of a humiliating group-stage exit, Gerard Pique rose to the fore to relieve the pressure on manager Ronald Koeman.

The 34-year-old centre-back scored the only goal of the game against Dynamo Kyiv at Camp Nou. With this win, Blaugrana opened their account in this season's competition.

It was a landmark strike from Pique in more ways than one. He is now the joint-most prolific goalscoring defender, with Roberto Carlos (16) in the history of the Champions League.

The four-time Champions League winner, in the process, has become the oldest goalscorer in the competition for Barcelona.

Incredibly, the Blaugrana have won all 14 Champions League games where Pique has scored in. That is a record tally of games any player has scored in the competition while winning all of them.

#3 Mohamed Salah becomes Liverpool's top scorer in the Champions League

Mohamed Salah scored Liverpool's winner against Atletico Madrid.

Mohamed Salah scored Liverpool's winner in their 3-2 Champions League win at Atletico Madrid. With the strike, the Egyptian created a number of records.

Salah became the first Liverpool player to score in nine consecutive games across competitions. With his 31st goal in the Champions League, the 29-year-old is now the Reds' most prolific scorer in the competition.

The Liverpool striker now has 12 goals across competitions this season, scoring five times in the Champions League and seven in the Premier League.

#2 Lionel Messi becomes the second player to score against 37 different teams in the Champions League

Lionel Messi scored a brace against Leipzig.

Lionel Messi may have had an uncharacteristically quiet start to life at PSG. But with a brace against Leipzig, the Argentinian magician has now scored three times in as many Champions League games for his new side.

Messi's first strike on the night made him only the second player (Cristiano Ronaldo being the other) to score against 37 different teams in the Champions League. The Copa America 2021 winner soon made it two on the night.

The Barcelona legend spurned an opportunity to score his first PSG hat-trick when he allowed Kylian Mbappe to take a late penalty in the game. The Frenchman, though, couldn't convert the penalty. It would have been a record ninth hat-trick in the Champions League for Messi.

#1 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player to score against 38 different teams in the Champions League

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a dramatic winner for Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Cristiano Ronaldo has had a blistering start to life on his return to Manchester United this summer.

The 36-year-old produced a superb header as United overhauled a 2-0 first-half deficit to beat Atalanta at Old Trafford. It was his sixth strike across competitions for his club. Ronaldo's latest goal for United was a landmark one too, making him the first player to score against 38 different teams in the Champions League.

Ronaldo also scored a late winner in United's win over Villarreal on Matchday 2. Thanks to his exploits against Atalanta, United are now top of their Champions League group, two points ahead of Villarreal and the Serie A side.

About the author

Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 20 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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Edited by Aditya Singh